Senor said the translator, presumed to be an Iraqi, was being operated on in a hospital.

The two men were shot at a neighborhood supermarket, Senor said.

Initial reports said the slain foreigner was a French or Spanish journalist, but Senor said the South African victim's Spanish name may have caused the confusion.

The attack appeared to be a random shooting. Gunmen have repeatedly attacked U.S. convoys in Baghdad and many foreigners have sharply restricted their movements in the capital. Azamiyah is a Sunni Muslim area where gunmen have recently been active.